There I was watching TV, not an unusual event in my household, and up comes the AT&T Halloween commercial. One of the four kids is practically spinning on too much candy, or so assumes Beck Bennett, the sole actor/grown-up who interviews a different group of four kids in each commercial.  It was a laugh out loud moment.

I hadn’t seen one of those commercials in awhile and it actually made me a little sad that I hadn’t. I know, that in and of itself sounds a little sad. Get a life girl, you might say.  I just state the truth. Laughing gets the blood pumping.

I find these commercials hysterical.  I can watch them over and over again and they still make me laugh. I’m not alone. I’ve talked with others who feel the same way. They actually make me feel better about being an AT&T customer.  From a brand connection standpoint, it works. It’s also not hard to remember the core benefits the campaign is touting.

Faster

Bigger

More

Here’s why these commercials, created by BBDO Atlanta and directed by Jorma Taccone, part of The Lonely Island comedy group, work so well:

CASTING

Beck Bennett is brilliant. He’s a natural with the kids, his reactions are priceless and his timing is perfect. The kids – well they, of course, make the spots. Most of them are non-actors. These are real first-graders and it comes off totally natural, as it should. The agency took the time to make sure they had the right talent both in front and behind the camera.

THE WRITING

Or non-writing. While the questions are mostly scripted, the reactions from the kids are not. They call it “guided improv.”  They let the kids roll and take the pure gems that come out of their mouths. They make sure the kids are never talking about the products or the company. Kudos to AT&T for letting it go that way. They’ve found a way to boil down the product features into value propositions so simple that even kids can articulate them.

MEDIA TIMING

The spots are timed not to wear out. Without having fully researched this (full disclosure) my own sense is that they flight the spots in an off-on again pattern.  Just as I was missing the campaign, it pops up again. They do go for frequency, but the humor holds up.

 YEAH, THE HUMOR!

Come on. These spots are FUNNY.  How can you not love that Werewolf girl?  She is my absolute favorite.

SO…which one is your favorite? Comment below.  Need to see some?  Go here:  http://goo.gl/QvFosS